How Paul Hollywood Handles Eating So Many Sweets During Cake Week On The GBBO

Between speculating about the controversy caused by "Mexican Week" or judge Prue Leith drowning kittens as a child, one common thing that goes through viewers' minds when watching the "Great British Bake Off" is how the judges handle eating so many sweets. Of course, we realize they're only taking a bite or two of each dish, but when you calculate how many dishes there are and how many bites are taken, you may wonder how Leith and fellow judge Paul Hollywood don't get sick of it. 

The most sweets to be eaten always happens during the first week of the season: Cake Week. When all 12 contestants need to make a contribution and both judges need to taste all 12 technical bakes, signature bakes, and then the "showstopper" bake. We know that there is at least a day between filming the first two challenges and the showstopper, however, that still means Hollywood and Leith have to take a mouthful of at least 24 cakes on one day and another 12 the following day.

Hollywood was interviewed on the podcast, Table Manners, by Jessie and Lennie Ware, during which he revealed his tactics for dealing with Cake Week (per Spotify).

According to WebMD, when you eat a large amount of sugar at once, your body pumps extra insulin into your arteries. The artery walls become inflamed and start to thicken, becoming stiffer. Over time, the stress of this can lead to heart issues. According to Self.com, a sugar hangover can come pretty close to the effects of an alcohol-induced one. So, you can imagine that the cast of the "The Great British Bake Off" needs to combat those effects routinely, since they've got no choice but to sample cakes and pastries for 10 consecutive weekends from April through June (via National World). 

When asked on the Table Manners podcast whether he loves to eat cake, Paul Hollywood said that he preferred pudding. He added that everyone in the tent — Mel Giedroyc, Sue Perkins, Mary Berry, Noel Fielding, Matt Lucas, and Prue Leith — all preferred savory foods over sweet. He said that every season has them saying, "'Oh no, it's Cake Week. Ugh!' And so by the end of it, I'm leaving in the car to go home and I'll have to pull into a fast food chain and go and suck on some salty chips because I've had this sweet overload" (per Spotify). 

He has the right idea. Cooking Light Food and Nutrition Director Brierley Horton suggests eating protein and fiber after too much sugar, but perhaps healthier options than fast food (via Cooking Light).